Incorporated in 1873, the Town's early history was distinguished by its agricultural base and its rail corridor connecting Statesville to Charlotte. Huntersville's first 80 years were marked by very slow growth and development, with a 1990 US Census population of approximately 3,000. Fueled by improved accessibility to Charlotte (via new Interstate interchanges) and the draw of Lake Norman, development in the 1990's rapidly increased its population to 29,387 in 2003. [Town of Huntersville, Huntersville Downtown Master Plan, 2004, www.huntersville.org, accessed August, 2012.]